snapshots
by mikazukidreams
Summary: To all the memories we've ever made, and to the many more to come. [sequel to Turning Tables, gift fic for Kiyomi]


**Summary: **To all the memories we've ever made, and to the many more to come.

_**Standard disclaimer applies here**_

**A/N: **For Kiyomi from Slovakia; I'm sorry for the late post!

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><p><strong>Snapshots<strong>

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_If you blink, you'll miss it._

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It's today. The day has finally come.

Sakura sits alone in her room as the noise of the outside party rambles on; it's one of the few times today she's actually alone with her thoughts and not crowded with friends and friendly civilians. The warm sunlight is streaming through the open window, and outside the birds are singing a beautiful melody.

It's a beautiful day. It's the perfect day to be outside, enjoying the warm weather with friends.

But not now. Sakura sits alone by the window, a clean leather book resting in her lap; the gold-plated letters shine in the light, and a faint smile finds its way up Sakura's face.

She has just enough time before she has to go out. Just one more glance before she has to leave; Ino made sure that if she were late, she would surely be _very _angry. Her pale, manicured hands traced the letters engraved on the cover and she turns to the front page.

-x-

i. _First Date, May 3. _

She remembers that day vividly. It was when she had just returned with Naruto, panicked and tired and running purely on adrenaline, but more determined than she'd ever been; because her Sasuke-kun was waiting for her in the hospital room.

She'd felt every emotion that one day: she'd woken up in Ame with the same irritated, lost feeling; spent the day distracted and went home, exhausted but always thinking. Thinking about how Sasuke was doing, if he was well, if he was eating. Then, she'd felt surprise and worry when Naruto had showed up late at night, frantic at her door. She remembers the panic when he'd mentioned Sasuke- Sasuke being ill, Sasuke needing _her- _and she remembers herself running, faster than she'd ever run in her whole life.

She remembers the hope and the overwhelming feeling of love when Sasuke had opened his eyes, reached for her, held her close. Like she'd been the only reason he was clinging onto life.

They went to the newly opened sushi place afterwards, and Sasuke had treated her to a wonderful meal. They'd talked and laughed (yes, she'd made him laugh, one of her greatest accomplishments, she believes) and for the first time Sakura had never felt happier.

He'd dropped her off at her house after, and although there weren't any goodnight kisses, Sakura felt like the luckiest girl in the galaxy. She'd finally understood Ino's ecstatic rambling when Shikamaru asked her out, finally saw why Hinata cried tears of joy when Naruto proposed- because loving someone was great, but having that person love you back was _better. _

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ii. _Flower Festival, May 15_

Ino had been so excited for the annual flower festival that year, because most of the flowers that decorated the festival had been from her parents' floral shop. She'd gotten extra tickets, and along with Shikamaru, Ino had decided to drag Sakura and Sasuke along.

Sasuke hadn't been the most enthusiastic person that day, Sakura remembers with a soft giggle, but he trudged along like a good boyfriend would. He'd stopped when she wanted to smell the wonderful flowers, waited patiently with Shikamaru when she and Ino chatted up with the many civilians of Konoha, and even started up small conversations with the elderly people that smiled in his direction.

Sakura remembered how beautiful all the flowers were, but she had _especially _loved the lilies. There were marvelous bouquets of those wonderful flowers in every colour Sakura could ever imagine- pink, orange, yellow, white- and at the end of the day, those were the flowers that still stuck in Sakura's mind.

She remembers the sun setting and Sasuke excusing himself for a brief moment, and the worry she'd felt when he didn't return for quite a while. She'd told Ino and Shikamaru that they could leave earlier, and then she'd plopped herself down on a cold bench to wait for Sasuke.

When he'd finally returned, he didn't return empty-handed; nestled against the crook of his arm was the biggest bouquet of lilies that Sakura had ever seen. She'd stood up, shocked, and felt butterflies explode in her stomach when Sasuke met her eyes and smirked.

She'd fallen in love with him a little bit more that day.

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iii. _Swim day, June 5_

It's been hot that day, Sakura remembers, and Naruto had suggested that they all head down to the beach for a swim since they all had the day off, and all of the others agreed. Ino had dragged along Hinata and Tenten with them to buy new swimwear, proclaiming that her old one didn't fit anymore.

After a long day rummaging through the shelves of a local clothing shop, they'd finally picked out a perfect swimsuit for each of them- Ino, a silver bikini; Hinata, a modest lilac one piece; Tenten, a sporty blue bikini; and Sakura had gotten a red, simple bikini for herself.

They'd told the boy they'd meet them down at the beach; giggling, they'd packed their summer bags and made their way to the beach. It was rare for days like that, where they were all free to spend the day together. Sakura loved it.

When they'd arrived, the boys all turned and stared, jaw-slacked. Even her Sasuke-kun, with his navy blue and black shorts and beautiful abs galore, openly stared at her. After a few minutes he blinked and a slow smirk emerged on his face- almost as if to say, _I've got the hottest girlfriend. _

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iv. _Mealtime, June 30_

She'd had an especially brutal day at the hospital that day- the number of surgeries Tsunade had her perform had left her beyond exhausted. It wasn't until the early evening when Tsunade allowed her to go home, with demands of rest and relaxation.

She'd stepped out onto the warm air, and all of Konoha was very peaceful and quiet. There wasn't a breeze, but Sakura felt a certain coolness in the warm summer air.

It wasn't until she was halfway home when she heard a snarky voice sneer out her name- the same voice that used to taunt her, that used to bring her to tears, the same voice that bullied her throughout her school days at the academy, when she was young and shy.

The same voice that belonged to Ami.

She looked the same, except her hair was longer; possibly because she still believed the rumor that Sasuke liked girls with longer hair. The hate, though, was still in her eyes, like a fire that only spread instead of tamed.

Ami had stepped out of the shadows with her little group of friends, sneering and taunting how Sasuke was only dating her because he had made a net with Naruto, which he'd lost. They sneered and laughed nastily in her face until she could barely contain her anger-

-but Sasuke came, with his face as hard as granite and whole body tense. Anger burned in his eyes like she'd never seen before, and suddenly the quiet evening was interrupted by the dark voice of Sasuke.

His voice was low and threatening when he hissed words in her defense, and before Sakura could register what was happening, Ami and her group hastily apologized and scampered away.

Sasuke had looked at her with all the affection in the world, and when she asked why he was there, he'd replied that he was going to walk her home and he'd made supper for both of them.

She didn't think she could have loved him anymore than she already did, but it was possible. She'd hit rock bottom in the well of love and for her, that was good enough.

Ami and her friends never bothered her again after that day.

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v. _Fireworks, July 5_

There was a festival that day, Sakura remembers, and she and Sasuke had been enjoying the friendly festivities that were lined up down the main street in Konoha. So far, Sasuke and Naruto had challenged each other in every possible game- from the duck pond to the darts- and Sasuke had won her a giant panda bear, a goldfish, a year's supply of Ichiraku's ramen (much to Naruto's dismay), and a new kimono from her favorite clothes shop.

He'd bought her snacks from every stand that boasted delicious food, and she was stuffed. Hinata was there with her too, face flushed every time her husband won her a prize.

Afterwards, they'd gone down to the sandy beach, waiting for the fireworks to come. When they did, Sakura had marveled at the sight of color exploding across the night sky.

She'd sensed Sasuke's eyes on her, and before she knew it his lips were on hers, working softly and slowly.

It was a kiss she'd never forget.

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vi. _Sasuke's birthday, July 23_

She'd gone all out that year- a huge party with streamers and colorful balloons screaming '_Happy Birthday!' _on them. Every one of their close friends had come, arms loaded with gifts and cards and snacks of all sorts. They'd piled in his house, and Sasuke, despite not liking too much noise and people, seemed to enjoy the party.

Sakura made sure he didn't eat too much though; there was another surprise she'd left for him later on. Sasuke, wearing a ridiculous party hat on his ruffled head, had opened his present with a faint smile on his face. He'd received presents of all sorts, from new weaponry to clothes to a familiar set of orange books (from Kakashi, no less), and he was happy for all of them. Maybe not necessarily the gift, Sakura realized afterwards, but for the friends who stuck by his side and slowly became his family.

When their friends piled out later on in the evening, singing of chorus of _'Happy birthday, Sasuke!', _Sakura had quietly smiled. She'd set up a table just for the two of them, lit by candles, and placed food she'd made herself on the table: tomato onigiri, rice balls, little meals that she knew would make him happy.

He'd eaten everything with a real, genuine smile on his face, and thanked her for the best birthday he'd ever had.

-x-

Sakura's not halfway through the book when Ino bursts in, donning a white bridesmaid dress and her long, platinum blonde hair done perfectly.

"Forehead! It's time," her best friend since _forever _cries, blue eyes glistening with overflowing joy. Ino then notices the book in her hand; more specifically, the photo album filled with all the memories she and Sasuke had made in the past year.

"He's changed a lot because of you," Ino says softly, and Sakura smiles. She knows. He knows. They _all_ know.

"Come on now," Ino adds, guiding Sakura up and straightening out her dress, inspecting her makeup and giving her hair one last check. Then, Ino hugs her in a light embrace- so she wouldn't mess anything up- and whispers, "I'm so happy for you, Sakura."

"I'm so happy you're here with me, Ino," Sakura replies, trying not to cry. "It wouldn't have been the same without you. All this planning, all the decorations...you've done so much for me, and-"

Ino pulls away with light tears in her eyes, a happy smile on her face. "You'd do the same for me. I know you would. And this- this is nothing. This is what best friends are for, aren't they? We look out for each other. And you're more than just my best friend; you're my sister, and I'll be damned if I didn't help my sister on her big day." Ino lets out a soft laugh, eyes warm and affectionate. "Well, enough of this mushy talk. C'mon, forehead. Don't keep the crowd waiting," she adds, and leads her out of the room, where her father is waiting.

And when Sakura steps outside, arm linked with her father's, the crowd cheers. The sky is still as bright as ever, the birds singing still, and Sakura looks ahead to where he's standing- the boy who broke her heart and mended it, the boy who filled it with the same emotion he took away- and a beautiful smile spreads across her face.

And as her father gives her away to the man who'd had her heart since day one, the only thing she thinks is, _to all the future memories we'll make._

_**Fin.**_

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><p><strong>Note: <strong>Gah i'm so sorry for the late post, Kiyomi! The past few months have been chaotic and i was in the hospital for a while after a really bad allergy reaction. But now I'm back! :) Although some of the people here on this site have been telling me to avoid it since there are a lot of people who like to plagiarize other people's work. Plagiarism is fucking rude; don't ever do it.

Anyways, here you go!

-A

PS: oh, and to that little shit guest who basically tore down my work, why don't you grow a pair and instead of hiding your fucking face behind anon use your goddamn username. this story isn't for you, honey, it's for Kiyomi. and if you're so against sasuke and the sasusaku pairing, it's called _don't fucking read fanfics for that pairing. _unless you're Kishi, you are just as clueless as the rest of us as to who's gonna end up with who. it's a game of faith and i'm sorry my opinion isn't in line with yours, but that doesn't mean you can fucking call my writing shit and shove your opinion down my throat. choke on it, asshole.


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